by Scott Gleeson and Shelby Mast, USA TODAY Sports

by Scott Gleeson and Shelby Mast, USA TODAY Sports

The never-ending debate for the best conference in college basketball can be decided in a multitude of ways. One is simply to base conference supremacy based on the number of NCAA tournament bids.

The Big 12 has comfortably secured seven tournament bids in our latest bracketology projections. Meanwhile, the Big Ten has recently caught up in the most bids discussion.

Michigan, Michigan State, Iowa, Wisconsin and Ohio State are the definites, and at least three of those teams have Final Four potential. Then there are the middle-of-the-pack clubs knocking on the NCAA tournament door.

Nebraska (18-11, 10-7) and Minnesota (17-12, 7-10) are listed among the last five in at the end of this week, and that's a scary place to be for any bubble team. It's particularly daunting for these Big Ten squads that need strong finishes in the conference tournament next week to punch their ticket to the NCAAs.

Both teams make solid cases for inclusion into the field of 68.

The Cornhuskers, led by Big Ten Player of the Year candidate Terran Petteway, have beaten Michigan State and Ohio State to go with an RPI of 49 and an SOS of 41. The regular-season finale vs. Wisconsin will be a pivotal test.

The Gophers are below .500 in conference play but a strength of schedule that ranks fourth in the country should trump that. Minnesota isn't exactly playing its best basketball right now, having lost three of its last four. But the overall body of work (RPI of 48, wins against Ohio State, Iowa) keep Richard Pitino's group in the field at this point. A home game vs. Penn State concludes the Gophers' season.

One thing to remember about the Big Ten: Even the borderline teams can pull off upsets as No. 11 or No. 12 seeds. That's in large part because of that grueling conference schedule, which can be deceiving based on road losses and readies teams for adverse matchups. All it takes is to get in, and the Big Ten's two iffy teams could be dangerous when the Madness begins.

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Bubble Tracker conference-by-conference breakdowns of the strength and weaknesses of borderline teams. Data as of March 7.

About our bracketologist: Shelby Mast has been projecting the field since 2005 and has finished as one of the top 5 national bracketologists for his website, Bracket W.A.G. He's predicted for The Indianapolis Star and collegeinsider.com and is an inaugural member of the Super 10 Selection Committee. Follow him on Twitter @BracketWag.